6 hours remaining

We are currently driving through Des Moines, Iowa and only have 475 miles left to go until we are at our new house! I cant believe only 475 miles… It seems like we have been driving for weeks. I tried to drive the entire trip through Nebraska, but after a Go Girl, a cup of coffee and a 5 hour energy drink I was still to sleepy! After about 250 miles we switched drivers and I took a little nap!!

I don't know what Nebraska's state flower is but I am convinced it should be the Sunflower. They are everywhere! We stood for a photo and this guy… a grasshopper?? Almost jumped up and made me wet my pants! He was huge!!

Well, like back in Christmas time, Niquie took her sweet time before she actually cleaned out her colon. We have stopped about 12 times in freezing cold to pouring down rain weather to try and get her to go. She hadn't gone in almost 48 hours and I knew she needed to by the absolutely smells she was letting off in the car. by the After 1600 miles she finally let go in a little town outside of Omaha, Nebraska. The doggies still haven't eaten 1 ounce of food since we left 34 hours ago which I think may be a good thing… I know they wont need to be going potty again anytime soon and we can finally drive for more than 2 hours at a time without stopping.

Last night we had dinner at Chili's in Salt Lake City. It was dark when we go there so we couldn't really see what it looked liked, but it seemed pretty nice. As soon as we exited Nevada, which we thought would never happen, we came up over the last mountain and saw the famous Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.

I think it is interesting how each state does things a little different. In California you don't know when you leave one town and enter into another. In Nevada, they have the cities initials carved into the side of a mountain. In Nebraska they write their town name on these large pipe looking things… like water towers but without the ball at the top. In Iowa, they are like Texas and each city has their own water tower which can be seen for miles away. I am not sure what Wyoming, Illinois or Indiana will have since it is dark and nothing can be seen except the freeway.

I would give anything to shower right now. Since being in the car with 2 stinky gassy dogs that have gone from being in the rain and mud and smell like something out of a trash can and then wearing the same clothes since leaving the house Saturday morning… I am not feeling to pretty right now. Matt and my dad have been in the truck, just the two of them… no dogs… they still look and smell clean! I am jealous.

About an hour ago we passed John Wayne's birth place in De Soto, Iowa. I am pretty surprised at the amount of historical stuff we have come across so far.

120 more miles and we will be leaving Iowa and entering Illinois. Then a little pass that we will gas up one last time and enter into our final time zone change and officially become a Buckeye!